By Praise Chinecherem
Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre (RULAAC) has expressed concerns over what it described as unsatisfactory reshufflement of President Bola Tinubu’s cabinet.
The group said Nigerians appeared unimpressed by the shake-up as the overarching belief is that under-performing ministers were spared.
The Federal Government, had on Wednesday announced a shake-up in Tinubu’s cabinet which saw the sack of five Ministers, re-assigning of 10 ministers to new ministerial portfolios and appointment of seven new ministers for Senate confirmation.
The sacked Ministers include Uju-Ken Ohanenye as Minister of Women Affairs; Lola Ade-John as Minister of Tourism; Tahir Mamman as Minister of Education; Abdullahi Gwarzo as Minister of State, Housing and Urban Development; and Jamila Ibrahim as Minister of Youth Development.
Among the nominated Ministers were Bianca Odumegu-Ojukwu as the Minister of State Foreign Affairs, while Nentawe Yilwatda as the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, officially bringing an end to the tenure of suspended Betta Edu.
The President also nominated Maigari Dingyadi as the Minister of Labour and Employment, Jumoke Oduwole as the Minister of Industry, Idi Maiha as Minister for the newly created Livestock Development Ministry, Yusuf Ata as the Minister of State, Housing and Urban Development, with Suwaiba Ahmad as Minister of State Education.
The FEC had also scrapped the Ministry of Niger Delta Development and announced the Ministry of Regional Development as a replacement to oversee the activities of all the regional development commissions.
It also scrapped the Ministry of Sports Development and transferred its functions to the National Sports Commission, while further approving the merger of the Federal Ministry of Tourism and the Federal Ministry of Arts and Culture to become the Federal Ministry of Art, Culture, Tourism and the Creative Economy.
Reacting to the development, Executive Director, RULAAC, Okechukwu Nwanguma noted that Tinubu’s initial cabinet selection did not consider merit, but focused more on compensating political allies.
According to him, the implication of the selection pattern was incompetence and corruption, and absence of the necessary governance expertise.
His words: “Tinubu’s initial cabinet selection prioritized political patronage over competence, leading to a composition of primarily old allies and surrogates, such as Wike, whose controversial actions during the elections have raised concerns.
“The resultant cabinet reflects incompetence and corruption, lacking the necessary governance expertise.
“The cabinet reshuffling did not reflect the expectation of Nigerians. Those who had brought bad name to the Tinubu administration are yet to be shown the exit door.
“Considering the very unfortunate situation the country has found itself, the president ought to have taken the bull by its horne, to redeem his image and salvage the economic and socio-political future of the nation.
“In the recent reshuffle, expectations were for the dismissal of underperforming ministers, yet many were merely reassigned, failing to address the core issue of inadequate performance.
“Nigeria urgently requires a cabinet of skilled, patriotic technocrats who understand the complexities of the nation’s challenges and are dedicated to effective governance.
“To foster real progress, Tinubu must prioritize qualifications over party affiliations, ensuring that the administration is equipped to tackle Nigeria’s pressing issues with urgency and efficacy.”
